My Mother’s brother, (uncle) Joseph (Joe) Traynor lived in Ballymount, Clondalkin, and was a Volunteer with ‘F’ Company, 4th Battalion, No 1 Dublin Brigade during the late 19’teens’. I would welcome any information about his ‘Volunteering’ activities to include a historical note I am writing about him.
Joe was captain of the “Young Emmets” GAA football club based in nearby Fox & Geese on the Naas Road. He attended the infamous Tipperary-Dublin match in Croke Park on 21st November 1920, later to be known as ‘Bloody Sunday’. Joe Traynor was unfortunately one of the 13 people to be shot dead on that day, having been shot twice at the canal end of Croke Park as he tried to make his escape with many others over the wall at that end.
Joe was a good friend of a PJ Ryan, with whom he attended the match on Bloody Sunday, and who was also a member of the ‘F’ Company. It was PJ Ryan who had to bring the tragic news of his death to Joe’s parents in Ballymount later on that Sunday evening.
Any scraps of information would be gratefully received.
For your information I am attaching a photo of Joe.
Thanking you in anticipation.
Michael Nelson.
JOSEPH TRAYNOR
BORN DRIMNAGH CASTLE 1900. DIED TRAGICALLY CROKE PARK,1920 (BLOODY SUNDAY)
5 Comments
Leave A Comment
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Dear Michael, I am currently researching into into WOI and aill send you any relevant items I encounter.
John O’Driscoll
Sent in By Jack Lane:
Danny Donnelly passed on the email re Joseph Traynor to me.
The reports of the inquests on the Croke Park deaths is in WO35/88B (British National Archives, Kew). I believe there is a copy of this in Croke Park/archives/museum. The findings are summarised in my book Executed for Ireland. The Patrick Moran Story in Appendix 5 Page 243 (Joseph Traynor).
To find anything on his Volunteer Activities is very difficult-they weren’t in the habit of writing down what they did! The witness statements which were released by the Bureau of Military History in 2004 and are available in the National Archives in Bishop Street may have a mention of him. There are about 1800 statements but you are most likely to find any mention of him in statements from members of his own Company. These statements were taken in the 1950’s from survivors of the War of Independence.
The other good source is the O’Malley notebooks which are held in UCD archives, Dublin. Ernie O Malley went around the country taking statements from survivors. Most of what I found useful was in the parts referenced 17b. A lot of what is there is repeated in the witness statements.
There is a book by James Gleeson called Bloody Sunday but it has no index so it is difficult to find things in it. I have looked through it and can’t find a mention of him there.
I hope this is helpful and if I find anything further in my notes I will email you again.
Sincerely,
May Moran
Hello Michael,
Just researching my family tree, my mother has said that joe was an uncle of hers, I am from townends st, was your father the master in arms on the B&I boats, any help gratefully appreciated.
Sean Hogan
Hi Sean, No Michaels father was not on the B&I boats. This Joseph Traynor was my mothers brother he was killed Bloody Sunday 1920 and is not your mothers uncle, as I know all my cousins. I just wonder was your mothers uncle John Joseph Traynor, volunteer, who was shot in the Dublin Union in 1916. John Josephs parents were from Wicklow as were Josephs. Do you have any Wicklow Traynors in you tree?
Have a look at this
This was my Gandad’s brother and gives information on John Traynor who was killed on Easter Monday 1916 under Eamonn Ceannt command.
https://www.bureauofmilitaryhistory.ie/reels/bmh/BMH.WS1511.pdf